ATTN: American Pit Bull owners.

[rebecca10782]

Quote:
I have to disagree. I had a pit/sharpie mix that was bred to fight and even exposed to fights before we took her in. She never bit any other animal or human in all of her 13 years. She was friends with the cats and best friends with our first golden retriever. Champ, the pitbull we have now was bred to fight. He is always wrestling with our golden retriever and constantly submitting to him. He gets along with the cats and chickens. In fact, I have never know any dog more timid in my life.

 

[ChickenToes]

What people seem to forget is that every single dog is different. Just because you know one dog that didn't get along with other pets, doesn't mean every single dog of that breed is the same way.

One of our friends has a Pit/Rottweiler mix. He is the sweetest dog I've ever met in my life. He gets along great with other dogs, even a little Yorkie.

 

[rebecca10782]

Yep, in fact, out of all of our dogs, our golden was the one to kill one of our chickens. He has a seizure disorder and was having bad attacks at the time. We figure he was just confused. I think he might have even been trying to play. It just proves that you can't trust any dog 100% and shouldn't be left alone with children or vulnerable animals.

 

[horsejody]

Quote:
Sometimes seizures can distort their vision and other senses. The dog can get very confused and attack people or animals they normally love because they are scared and don't recognize the victim. They also do other crazy unexplainable things. My dog has been known to try to eat the carpet (tries to graze on it like a cow eating grass) when he is having a focal seizure. He becomes so confused that he doesn't recognize us or know his own name. We never leave him outside unattended just in case he has an episode. He even has a medic alert tag in case he were to ever get lost. BTW he loves the chickens and has never injured one. When baby chicks get to the point that they have to be moved out of the house he gets so stressed the babies are gone we have to watch for seizures. His first grand mal seizure occurred when DD visited with her dog, and that dog grabbed a silkie chick out of the brooder and killed it.

 

[rebecca10782]

Yea, Bailey has grand mals 90 % of the time. Every once in a while he will stare straight ahead and start backing up into the wall. He will go months without anything and then they hit and he will have 5 a day. The worst was 20 in 48 hours. We thought we were going to loose him

It is really upsetting because he has no idea where he is or who we are. He walks around bewildered for about 15 min. I know that he wasn't himself when he killed Gracie. In addition to being confused by the seizures, he was on a new medication that was making him act very weird and spacey. I was just pointing out that even the "nicest" breeds can kill or hurt small animals. You always hear about pit bull attacks but never anything about other breeds attacking. No dog ever attacks because they have revenge in their hearts. So many people act as if all pit bulls are always on the lookout for something to kill. The only reason a dog attacks is fear. Anyway, Bailey also starts to have seizures when he gets stressed out about something. He has been on every medication, he gets acupuncture once a month. I think we have tried everything. He was passed around to a few homes before we rescued him.

 

[lindamass15]

I dont blame the dog on how it behave most of the time it would be us the humanes fault on how the dog was rasied and that reflect its behavior. We have our pit (name Girl)when she was 3 months old and had her for a little three years now and she could be the most protective thing I mean even against a squirrel but then she loves kids, my 7 year old niece sometime even go into Girl dog house andd just stay with her and ride her when my niece was younger.
The thing is that it just depend on how you raised it from a puppy for example Girl would stop at whatever she doing as soon as she hears her name(from anybody in the family), but then my brother have this other language that he communicate with her and by saying and whisper(whatever it is) it to her she would just snap at whatever he wants her to. this is why I say it all depend on the owner.

 

[mrsmarkham]

Ok Guys,
How about this LOL. I am on my 6th, 7th, and 8th Pitbulls right now!! We currently have 1 Registered, 1 Purebred and one intentional mixed Pit/Lab/Blue Heeler.

I absolutely ADORE these dogs!! All of mine have been 55lb plus LAP DOGS. They are patient, tolerant and loving towards my children, good with strangers, love to play and have generally been a HUGE part of my life.

I have had them and occasionally bred them since my oldest child was 6- He is now 21 and wants one of his own. I could not see myself with out a Pit or Pit Mix, they are the most loyal dog I have ever owned. NO matter where I have lived, bad part of town or 15 miles out of town- they have been an integral part of my family.

Rather than swamp you with Photos, you can find them on my website www.livingplanetfarms.com
There are pictures of them under Western Bullies (the intentional mix) and Farmviews (my purebreds are there). There are pictures of them interacting with my then 2 yr old daughter and my Asperger's Autistic 15 yr old son.

 

[uglydog]

PLEASE READ THIS CAREFULLY FOR MORE INFO GO TO http://thenewtdha.com/smf1.5/index.php?topic=635.0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Why this House Bill 1982 should be OPPOSED:
>
>
>
> 1. This bill would allow for declaring a
> dog vicious based on its “physical nature.” That is an
> attempt to target breeds of dogs and is breed specific
> legislation by a different name. This determination could be
> made with no regard for the dog’s actual temperament or
> history.
>
> 2. This bill would allow for a dog to be
> declared vicious based on things it allegedly does in its
> own e
> nclosure without the dog ever getting out. This law would
> punish people who contain their dogs in an enclosure and
> yet, this is exactly what we want them to do instead of
> letting the dogs run loose.
>
> 3. The bill would allow the unfair
> targeting of dogs that have not done anything other that
> perhaps bark at the fence to be declared vicious which
> subjects the owner to the same requirement as owners of
> dangerous dogs that have bitten someone and caused injury.
>
> 4. Dangerous dog cases are often more about
> the relationships of neighbors than about dogs. This bill
> would allow a neighbor to say he or she is fearful that a
> fenced dog might get out or that it might cause them injury
> for a dog that is contained within an enclosure. This is a
> subjective standard that is fraught with possibility for
> unfairness.
>
> 5. Requiring that owners of dogs weighing
> 40 pounds or more to have a secure enclosure for their pets
> is tantamount to saying that all such dogs are dangerous and
> should be treated as if they have been declared dangerous
> without them ever doing anything. "Secure
> enclosures" by state law are those for dogs already
> declared dangerous. This would mean that these dog owners
> would have to construct a "secure enclosure" for
> dogs that have never done one thing. Here is what a
> "secure enclosure" means that all owners of dogs
> 40 pounds and over would have to comply with:
>
>
> (4) "Secure enclosure" means a fenced area or
> structure that is:
>
> (A) locked;
>
> (B) capable of preventing the entry of the general
> public, including children;
>
> (C) capable of preventing the escape or release of a
> dog;
>
> (D) clearly marked as containing a dangerous dog; and
>
> (E) in conformance with the requirements for enclosures
> established by the local animal control authority.
>
>
> So, if you have to put a sign saying DANGEROUS DOG on your
> fence for your dog despite that it has done NOTHING. AND,
> you have to comply with local requirements for "secure
> enclosures." Some local requirements include enclosures
> with tops, concrete flooring, and size requirements. AGAIN,
> I know this sounds crazy, but this is for ALL dogs weighing
> 40 pounds or more. This law would be unfairly enforced
> against dogs like American Pit Bull Terriers, Rotties,
> Akitas, German Shepherd Dogs, Dobies, Huskies, Malamutes,
> Mastiffs, Chow-Chows, etc.
> 6. Requiring 40 pound dogs or over to
> always be on a leash in the immediate control of a person,
> in a residence or in a secure enclosure, prevents those dogs
> from ever going to a dog park or participating in events
> that are off lead or allow the dog to be separate from the
> handler which include tracking (dogs are on leads up to
> 30’ in length), search & rescue efforts (dogs on long
> leads and move ahead of20handler), herding, hunting, and
> being used as working dogs and police dogs. Most dogs used
> in all of these activities are over 40 pounds.
> 7. This bill would prohibit hunters from
> using a dog that is 40 pounds or over. Hunting dogs are
> typically over 40 pounds and include all sorts of dogs.
> 8. This bill is way too restrictive and
> vague and needs to be defeated in its entirety. Our laws are
> strong enough. Current law provides that if your dog makes
> an unprovoked act while outside it enclosure that someone
> says put them in fear of being injured, your dog can already
> be declared dangerous even if it did not bite, scratch or
> even touch someone. It is a subjective standard.
>
>
>
> FAX & CALL. Email is not a good way to communicate and
> some of them are blocking it now.
>
>
>
> Be sure to put: OPPOSED TO HB 1982 or VOTE NO ON HB 1982
> in bold, large letters as your subject title.
>
>
>
> Bill’s Author: Trey Martinez Fischer, San Antonio
> (512) 463-0616
> (512) 463-4873 Fax
>
>
> COUNTY AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
>
> Clerk: Revlynn Lawson
> Phone: (512) 463-0760
>
> The Capitol Address for ALL Representatives:
>
> PO Box 2910, Austin, Texas 78768
>
> Rep. Garnet Coleman (chair)
> http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist147/coleman.php
> Capitol Phone: (512) 463-0524 FAX: (512) 463-1260
> Rep. Geanie Morrison (Vice Chair)
> http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist30/morrison.php
> Capitol Phone: (512) 463-0456 FAX: (512) 476-3933
> 0ARep. Leo Berman
> http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist6/welcome.htm
> Capitol Phone: (512) 463-0584 FAX (512) 463-3217
> Rep. Valinda Bolton
> http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist47/bolton.php
> Capitol Phone: (512) 463-0652 FAX (512) 463-0565
> Rep. Joaquin Castro
> http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist125/castro.php
> Capitol Phone: (512) 463-0669 FAX (512) 463-5074
> Rep. John E. Davis
> http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist129/davis.php
> Capitol Phone: (512) 463-0734 FAX (512) 479-6955
> Rep. Marisa Marquez
> http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist77/marquez.php
> Capitol Phone: (512) 463-0638 FAX (512) 463-8908
> Rep. Ralph Sheffield
> http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist55/sheffield.php
> Capitol Phone: (512) 463-0630 FAX (512)322-9054
> Rep. Wayne Smith
> http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist128/smith.php
> Capitol Phone: (512) 463-0733 FAX (512) 463-1323

 

[bestponymilo]

Game bred Pitbulls will be animal aggressive--that is what they are bred for. Of course each dog is an individual, but if you buy from a game line, chances are the dog is going to have some level of animal aggression.

 

[Silkiefan]

can you hear me now? :

I'll agree with that. The one I had was given to me by a guy from my work. There is a thing about the breeds of dogs though. Even saw something on television about it. Not that specific breed but as an example, Jack Russel Terriers were bread to kill rats. People get them and te all of the sudden they are asking, "I don't understand why little spot would kill our pet bunny." Some things are just going to happen. Some things are just in a dogs nature. I am almost going to go out on a limb and say we need to start breeding new dogs to fit peoples needs for today in lieu of yesteryear when a dog needed to be functional. Back then people had dogs that were meant for a specific task. Today people are looking for dogs as companions mainly. Maybe we need to find some of those friendlier breeds and cross them to fit that criteria. Then a lot of these problems with certian types of dogs wont be an issue with people. I am sorry this is winded but when I saw the show and my other experience with our former pitt bull, my mind had gone from open to changed and maybe a little more educated. I know there are exceptions in all dogs so I am not trying to call all breeds bad or anything of the sorts.

I totally agree. I did a college paper on this very idea^
My Lab fetches anything, my Border Collie herds anything... breeds are supposed to reflect what they were bred for. HOWEVER, there will be exceptions to anything. Labradors are friendly right? Not ours. I cannot take her to a dog-park or out in public, so walking her is tricky. Border Colllies are high-energy right? Not ours, my B.C. is lazy and totally mellow. I'm fostering the quietest, calmest Chihuahua I've ever met.
A prospective dog owner should REALLY research what they expect out of their pet based on the breed. Consider worst case scenario (the dog's bad qualities that might show up) VS. the best case scenario ( the dog's best qualities that might show up) and then look for a dog that has exactly what you want. Think of it like playing a dating game: weed out the candidates that are not PERFECT (for you) I wouldn't feel bad re-homing prospective pets until you find the right fit. Maybe you could foster??​